EAHP represents over 30,000 hospital pharmacists across 37 member countries. EAHP represents and develops the hospital pharmacy profession within Europe in order to ensure the continuous improvement of care and outcomes for patients in the hospital setting. This is achieved through science, research, education, practice, as well as sharing best-practice and responsibility with other healthcare professional
The EAHP Board, elected for three-year terms, oversees the association’s activities. Comprising directors responsible for core functions, it meets regularly to implement strategic goals. Supported by EAHP staff, the Board controls finances, coordinates congress organization, and ensures compliance with statutes and codes of conduct.
The EAHP staff supports the Board in executing EAHP’s mission. The Staff assists in financial management, events organisations, policy activities and all EAHP projects. The EAHP staff works closely with EAHP’s members and ensures the effective communication all relevant stakeholders.
The first member countries were Belgium, Britain, Denmark, France, the Federal Republic, Germany, Italy and The Netherlands in 1972. EAHP has now 36 EAHP members and 2 Associate Members. EAHP is open to countries members of the Council of Europe and since 2022 to organisations representing the interests of hospital pharmacists from outside the Council of Europe (Associate Membership)
EAHP’s structure is also composed by different standing committes: EAHP Scientific Committee, EAHP Education Executive Committee and the EAHP CTF Steering Committee.
At EAHP, we are committed to transparency in our governance, ethical standards, and funding practices. This section provides open access to our foundational documents, including the EAHP Statutes, Code of Conduct, and Funding Sources. By sharing these resources, we aim to uphold accountability and foster trust with our members, partners, and the public.
Keep up with all EAHP’s events and webinars. Contact the team at info@eahp.eu should you have any questions about upcoming events or activities.
Here you can find all upcoming events organised by EAHP and by all its members and associate members. Do not hesitate to contact the events team at events@eahp.eu should you have any questions about the organisation of these events.
Hospital pharmacists conduct a critical role in the care of patients in hospitals. Learn more about what they do here and in all the pages under Hospital Pharmacy practice and Policy.
Self-Assessment
SILCC
Closed SIGs
EAHP brings together experts from many areas of hospital pharmacy practice providing and highlighting good local sustainable practices as that can be up-scaled and shared with other countries. The EAHP Working Group on Sustainability has the aim of reducing the environmental burden of the hospital pharmacy services.
The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP), and its 36 member country platforms are creating a Common Training Framework for the hospital pharmacy education in Europe. The goal of this project is to allow the free movement of hospital pharmacists within the European Union.
The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) and the European Society of Clinical Pharmacy (ESCP) have collaboratively developed the Oath to Society. The Oath to Society is all encompassing and acts as a contract for excellence in providing compassionate patient care, working as part of the healthcare team and advancing the pharmacy profession, and showcasing how clinical and hospital pharmacists work every day
A day created to highlight the importance and to celebrate the work done by hospital pharmacies. This day celebrates all hospital pharmacy teams.
Catch up with EAHP’s press releases
Find all EAHP relevant publication like the EAHP Surveys, annual reports and the history books.
The European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy (EJHP) is the only official journal of the European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) and is committed to advancing the science, practice and profession of hospital pharmacy. As the premier communication platform for hospital pharmacists worldwide, EJHP is a major source for continuing education as well as updates on advances in the practice and standard of pharmaceutical care for patients.
When EAHP and Hospital pharmacists appear in the news.
EAHP publishes a monthly EU monitor with updates about the latest EAHP initiatives and information relevant for the hospital pharmacy profession.
Sponsor Channel
The Sponsor Channel is designed to maximise visibility and engagement, allowing sponsors to connect with the hospital pharmacy community and partners in a dynamic and interactive environment. From product demonstrations to networking sessions, the Sponsor Channel offers a range of opportunities for sponsors to showcase their offerings and generate leads in the new EAHP Website.
Education and Research
Charlotte Ménage-Anjuère, Rakiba Belkir, Elisabeth Bergé, Audrey Decottignies, André Rieutord, Xavier Mariette, Raphaèle Séror
We needed to assess the impact of our patient education program on Sjogren’s syndrome (SESAME) in order to continuously improve it.
A playful online questionnaire was designed and implemented to assess patients’ knowledge about Sjogren’s syndrome.
A interprofessional team (3 rheumatologists, 3 pharmacists) and a 4-patient group who participated in the education program together proceeded to the questionnaire design: 1) definition of a competency framework for patients with Sjogren’s syndrome; 2) from literature review, identification of quality requirements for a questionnaire (scientific quality, opportunity to interact, means of expression, logical chaining of questions, simplicity, utility, shortness, bias prevention, playfulness, variety, online diffusion). To fulfill these criteria, we used a clear vocabulary and concise questions, included open-ended questions on patient experience, focused on the artwork, randomized the order of answer choices, and shared the questionnaire online. Once the SESAME quiz was established, a scoring system was defined by the expert group. Face validity, feasibility and reproducibility were assessed to validate the questionnaire. 25 patients were contacted to complete the questionnaire twice. Patients also evaluated the content, structure and feasibility using 12 items (understandable language, unambiguous sentences, length of the questionnaire, difficulty, web access). Reproducibility was calculated using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) on patient answers separated by 48 hours.
The questionnaire includes 28 questions divided into 4 parts: Sjogren’s signs, Sjogren’s causes, treatment, daily life with the disease. The 25 patients filled in the questionnaire twice (96% women, 54 years min-max[23;74], 4 years since the diagnosis min-max[1;20]). The questionnaire was filled in from a computer (n=38), a tablet (n=3) or a smartphone (n=9). The average response time was 19 minutes. The median score was 34 points min-max[22;46] out of 50. 18 patients evaluated the questionnaire. 15 patients or more regarded its content, organization and feasibility as “very good”. 5 patients found it difficult. The reproducibility was very high (total ICC = 0.87 IC95% [0.74-0.94], ICC on each part between 0.61 et 0.87).
The SESAME quiz is now freely available (https://etp-rhumato.typeform.com/to/qsVhR1) and all the Hospital centers caring for Sjogren patients can use it for their follow up.
Production and Compounding
María Lourdes Recio Blázquez, Alberto Pérez Morales
It was necessary to establish a quality control of this pharmaceutical process.
A computer method of gravimetric quality control of the tablet splitting process was designed.
The procedure consists on a precision scale connected to a computer in which, according to the uniformity of mass assay of the European Pharmacopoeia, the weights of 20% of a batch of whole tablets destined to be split are automatically recorded in a spreadsheet, carrying out the following formulas:
=AVERAGE: provides the average weight of the sample of whole tablets.
=MAX and =MIN: selects respectively the largest and the smallest of the weights.
=STDEV: calculates the standard deviation of the sample weights.
With the average weight of the whole tablets, the theoretical weight of the half-tablets is calculated, establishing a maximum and a minimum admissible limit with the following formulas:
=AVERAGE(whole tablets)/2: determines the theoretical average weight of each half-tablet.
=AVERAGE(whole tablets)/2 ± 7.5%: establishes upper and lower gravimetric limits that cannot be exceeded by any half-tablet.
All the half-tablets need to be weighted, as the tablet-splitting process is carried out tablet-by-tablet and this modus operandi is not reproducible enough. In case of non-compliance with maximum and minimum weight criteria, the half-tablet must be discarded.
Conditional functions were established such that the spreadsheet itself reflects the half-tablet acceptance/rejection decision.
Basic technical computer skills, training in the technique of tablet splitting, appropriate clothing and environmental measures to avoid risks to the operator and the medications are required.
Since 2015, two different medicinal products were subjected to the tablet splitting technique. A total of 10,536 halves of suitable tablets were obtained, which permitted safe dosing at lower doses than commercialized, and also generated a financial asset of 101,724 Euros. 566 halves were discarded. The splitting efficiency was of 94.9%.
This quality control procedure is applicable to all divisible solid oral dosage forms. The standardization of the technique and the quality controls will allow to extend it to other medicinal products with dosing and economic purposes.
Education and Research
Fionnuala Nevin, Gail Melanophy, Aisling Collins, Miriam Moriarty, Grainne Courtney, Tamasine Grimes, Gaye Stephens
The available literature strongly advocates the importance of training for users of electronic prescribing systems to ensure their safe and effective use. However, there is a lack of evidence to demonstrate the effect that ongoing training has on the use and impact of these systems. This study was carried out to strengthen the case for staff training resources for electronic prescribing systems.
A study was carried out to investigate the effect of a training intervention on the prevalence of prescribing errors found in an outpatient electronic prescribing system currently in use. Audit and feedback methods were used. Prescription audits were carried out before and after the delivery of a classroom-based training intervention. The audits were used to measure and analyse the effect of the intervention on prescribing errors found in the electronic prescribing system. A questionnaire and clinician observations were carried out with prescribers. The pre-intervention audit results, questionnaire, and clinician observations were used to inform the prescriber training intervention.
Key stakeholders were recruited and assisted in the planning and delivery of the study methods. This was to ensure participate buy-in and study success. The audit tools and questionnaire were initially piloted to test their design, and allow adjustments to be made based on feedback received.
The prevalence of prescribing errors was significantly reduced, following the delivery of the training intervention. Statistically significantly more medications prescribed during the pre-intervention audit contained one or more errors when compared with the post-intervention audit (28.6% versus 9.2%, p < 0.05). Most errors found were deemed to be system-related errors.
The study demonstrates the positive impact that ongoing training can have on users’ interactions with an electronic prescribing system. Electronic prescribing systems are being increasingly considered and implemented in healthcare settings internationally. The results of this study could be used to inform the planning for training interventions to be delivered as part of ongoing system maintenance. The study stands to inform those managing electronic prescribing projects that, despite initial training, errors can still occur and must be addressed. This study supports the need to provide adequate training resources for users of electronic prescribing systems.
Education and Research
María Mar Alañón Pardo, Sacramento Corral Vinuesa, Raúl Pérez Serrano, Isabel Benet Giménez, Alfonso Ambrós Checa, Álvaro Díaz Castro, Miguel Ángel García Cabezas, Élida Vila Torres, Carmen Encinas Barrios, Marta Rodríguez Martínez
Acute intoxications cause significant morbidity-mortality worldwide, and their rapid treatment is vital.
APP-Antídotos is the first free Spanish mobile application for toxicology research, designed to facilitate immediate access to relevant information on antidote applications in toxicological emergencies.
The “Antídotos” application for mobile devices (APP) was developed by our Departments of Pharmacy, Emergencies, Intensive Medicine and Paediatrics to facilitate consultations by healthcare professionals on the pharmacological treatment of the most frequent acute intoxications in our setting.
The APP contains toxicological data from the “Antidote Guidelines” developed in our third-level university hospital, based on primary (drug information sheets, original scientific articles), secondary (Medline results, using “antidotes”, “poisoning”, “hospital pharmacy department” and “guideline” as search terms) and tertiary (toxicology databases) sources of information.
The Pharmacy Department was responsible for the graphic design, structural development and programming of the APP for mobile devices (smartphones, tablets) with Android or IOS9 operating systems, which could be downloaded free from Google Play or Apple Store.
APP-Antídotos is organized in 31 chapters on different types of intoxication and their definition, mechanism and symptoms, with recommendations on antidotes and references. It is structured in seven sections: “Information”, “Intoxication index”, “Antidote index” (37 antidotes), “Toxin index”(>240 toxins), “Notes”, “See Antidote Book in PDF” and “Telephone for Toxicological Emergencies”.
Between April and August 2016, users downloaded 2091 installations from Google Play (72.5%-Android) and Apple Store (27.5%-iOS9); 73.6% of devices were smartphones and 26.4% tablets.
The APP was downloaded from Android in Spain, 55.8%; Brazil, 5.7%; India, 5.5%; Columbia, 4.3%, Mexico, 4.0%; Ecuador, 2.7%; others, 22.0%. The distribution by language/country was: Spanish/Spain, 60.2%; Spanish/USA, 11.1%; English/USA, 7.9%; Portuguese/Brazil, 5.0%; English/UK, 4.7%; Spanish/Mexico, 1.2%; others, 9.9%. The geographic distribution of iOS9 installations was: Europe, 90.5%; Latin-America/Caribbean, 5.9%; USA/Canada, 1.4%; Africa/Middle-East/India, 0.4%, Asia/Pacific, 1.8%.
Mean user evaluations were 4.6 (Android) and 5.0 (iOS9) stars (maximum of 5 stars).
Fifty-four publications were found on social networks (48.2%-Facebook, 51.8%-Twitter), 444 shares, 1094 “I like” and 1045 video plays.
The APP will be regularly updated by the authors taking user suggestions into account, and it will be translated into English to extend its reach to other healthcare.
Clinical Pharmacy Services
Tine Van Nieuwenhuyse, Sabrina De Winter, Isabel Spriet, Thomas De Rijdt
During the last decade, healthcare shifted in many ways towards a more patient-focused rather than a disease-focused approach. Hospital pharmacy services experienced a similar development. Traditional drug-oriented services expanded towards patient-oriented services by imbedding computerized clinical decision support (CCDS) in the prescribing process and implementing bedside clinical pharmacy services, both leading to improved efficacy and safety of medication use. However, due to limited resources, clinical pharmacy services are not implemented on a hospital-wide basis in Belgian hospitals.
To guarantee patient safety throughout the hospital, emphasizing patients at risk, we started in March 2016 with the development and implementation of central check of medication appropriateness.
Development and implementation of central check of medication appropriateness (COMA) in hospitalized patients in a 2000-bed academic hospital.
Based on a risk analysis, high risk prescriptions are checked by a hospital pharmacist for appropriateness. A daily check (0.5 FTE) of automatically generated queries is performed using standardized algorithms. The queries are a result of the screening of all new prescriptions in the electronic prescribing system of the last 24 hours. If an urgent intervention is necessary, in case of a serious adverse event, a phone call is carried out to the treating physician. In all other scenarios, interventions are performed via electronic warnings in the patient’s file.
– Development of 75 specific algorithms covering 5 pharmacotherapeutic areas of interest: drugs with restrictive indication, medication-related biochemical changes, evaluation of overruled interventions raised by CCDS, reimbursement of drugs, sequential therapy for bio-equivalent drugs.
– Education of 8 pharmacist involved in the COMA
– During a 6-month period, 19220 prescriptions were checked for which 8284 (43%) electronic warnings were sent and 224 (1%) phone calls were carried out. When analysed without automatic warnings for sequential therapy, 11751 prescriptions were checked for which 815 (7%) electronic warnings were sent and 224 (2%) phone calls were carried out.
For the future we obtain next goals:
• Evaluation of the current COMA, with emphasis on improving specificity
• Development of new algorithms , also expanding to other areas of interest
• Development of an easy access training tool for hospital pharmacist to perform COMA
Clinical Pharmacy Services
S. Jornet Montaña, M. Martín Marqués, P. Jolonch Santasusagna, M. Juan Aguilar, C. Gomez Blanco, P. Salvador Collado
The constant development of new therapies against hepatitis C and the lack of experience in their management requires health professionals to work together.
An online platform was created to make inquiries, resolve doubts and establish a shared database among clinical pharmaceutics within the province.
Meetings of the provincial pharmaceutical association were conducted to jointly identify shared necessities across professionals and to determine the best communication system to be used in terms of efficiency, speed and reliability.
The pharmaceutical association created an interactive platform, which was easily accessible from a virtual campus. The platform eases the tasks of sending inquiries and comments about side effects to all pharmaceutical professionals in the system, simultaneously and in a timely fashion. This platform also allows the creation of debate forums to answer questions, and promotes knowledge sharing among participants. As time goes by and based on experience of new drugs, a drug interactions database is created. The platform also allows knowledge of whether specific combinations of drugs have been used and the hospital’s own experience, even if no official studies exist. In addition, the platform allows updating the previously introduced interactions and shows who has done it, so this participant can be asked if necessary. This system also allows the sharing of written information, such as patient brochures, recommendations, bibliography and scientific society links and other websites of interest.
The created platform meets the pharmaceutical participants’ expectations and allows equal treatment of all patients independently of the hospital where they are located. This platform allows professionals to work together for the same cause and overcome individual knowledge and resources constraints. This platform will be used for other illnesses for which special pharmaceutical attention is required. Finally, the platform will be expanded by inviting other provinces to join our project.
